1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a pattern inspection method, a pattern inspection apparatus, a semiconductor device manufacturing method, and a program, and is directed to the measurement and inspection of, for example, a semiconductor pattern using a charged particle beam.
2. Related Background Art
When a semiconductor pattern is automatically measured using a scanning electron microscope, automatic focusing processing or pattern recognition processing, for example, may fail in the middle of the measurement, so that a measurement value results in an abnormal value. In such a case, if the measurement is judged to be an error and remeasurement is automatically carried out when the measurement value exceeds a certain range, the automatic measurement can be continued without troubling an operator.
However, if a measurement point where the measurement error has occurred is remeasured as it is, the measurement point is irradiated with the electron beam twice, which is a significant problem in the case of measuring a pattern made of a material greatly damaged (volume shrinkage due to the desorption of a protecting group) by the irradiation of the electron beam such as a resist for ArF excimer laser exposure devices or a low-k material. Moreover, even in the case of a material which is not damaged by the irradiation of the electron beam, the shape of the pattern changes due to a contrast change caused by a charge-up and contamination caused by the irradiation of the electron beam, so that it is impossible to accurately measure the pattern.